


An Imperfect Arrangement

by accio_broom



Series: Weasley Hump Day Drabbles [6]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Blind Date, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:01:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27248470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/accio_broom/pseuds/accio_broom
Summary: Charlie Weasley has moved home to run a new Dragon reserve in Wales.  His mother has signed him up for a new speed dating initiative, designed to push the magical community together and repopulate after the war.  How will his first date go?
Relationships: Lavender Brown/Charlie Weasley
Series: Weasley Hump Day Drabbles [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1936108
Comments: 11
Kudos: 9
Collections: Hump Day Drabbles





	An Imperfect Arrangement

**Author's Note:**

> It's Wednesday and my favourite writing day because it's time for Weasleys, Witches & Writer's Hump Day Drabbles. Today's prompt was
> 
> "This is nothing like an arranged marriage and you know it."
> 
> "It's okay. You don't have to love me."
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! x

There were few things Charlie Weasley was afraid of. He was head dragon keeper at the Romanian Dragon Reserve and in his time he had been one of the best Gryffindor Quidditch seekers and Captains the team had ever seen. But the sight of his mother approaching him with a burgundy red tie and a comb in hand scared the shit out of him enough to agree to go on a blind date, just to keep her quiet.

He knew he shouldn't have come home. He hadn't visited since the Second Wizarding World War and Fred's funeral. He wasn't that he was avoiding his family but more his mother's constant suggestions that he should settle down whenever he visited. It didn't help that his other five siblings were happily getting cosied up and popping out grandchildren every ten minutes. Even George, who had agreed to remain a bachelor like him at Ron's stag, was expecting his first child any day now.

It wasn't as if he was averse to finding a wife. He'd been on plenty of dates with the women, and men, of Romania. But the problem with acting as mother to an army of dragons was that the lifestyle didn't really compliment settling down. A normal day for him consisted of waking before dawn to feed the colony, most of the day spent checking on the dragon's welfare or walking the babies then a final feed just before midnight. In between jobs, he napped. Dragons liked their sleep, but they kept unusual hours. They were rather like cats – just more bitey and fiery.

He'd only moved home because a group of Welsh Greens had been discovered sleeping under Pen-Y-Fan mountain in the Brecon Beacons. The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures hadn't wanted to uproot them from their home since they were comfortable and settled and so he had been poached to set up a new reserve; Gwarchdodfa'r Ddraig Llyn Cwm Llwch. Now Charlie was in charge of an entire reserve, he had even less time for dating, especially now he had to learn how to speak Welsh.

Today's date had been arranged by a new Ministry department, the Department of Magical Continuation, which was responsible for helping the British Magical community grow after the massive losses they'd suffered during the war. This new initiative was kind of like the muggle speed dating experience and Charlie had assumed his mother had signed him up for it. He received an owl not long after moving into his new cottage on the outskirts of the reserve informing him he would be set up on a series of dates with eligible 'matches' and asked to rate his experience post-date. The witches would do the same. If they both agreed they felt a spark, they'd automatically be set up into a binding marriage contract. It was extreme, but so far had a 100% success rate.

He stopped outside the small coffee shop and took a deep breath. He was 35 and he looked after dragons. He could handle an overkeen witch. He was cool; probably not as cool as Bill or Ginny but in the Weasley family cool rankings, he was definitely a top 5 contender. He owned his own house and his own broom. If it was a truly awful experience, he could just claim it was dragon feeding time and leave. He took another breath and pushed open the door, stepping into the cosy shop.

He cast his eye over the busy café, looking for the pre-agreed indicator, a purple scarf. He spotted it almost immediately and tried his hardest not to let his jaw hit the floor. He knew the witch; she'd dated his brother during his 6th year at Hogwarts. Her name was Lavender something or other. But that wasn't what had surprised him. She was absolutely stunning; almost taking his breath away. He felt his stomach twist with nerves. He could see why his brother had been attracted to her originally. His eyes were drawn briefly to the deep scar that travelled from right temple to her left jaw, but it didn't bother him. Most of the wizards and witches that had fought in the Battle of Hogwarts had scars.

He pulled out the empty seat opposite her and slipped into it, saying a silent prayer to Merlin that she had done some maturing since she'd dated Ron. He didn't have the patience to deal with a clingy or jealous witch and it didn't fit in with the rest of his lifestyle.

He opened his mouth to introduce himself but was interrupted almost immediately by her.

"Not another Weasley…" Lavender rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair, a cross look on her face. She defiantly wrapped her arms around her chest.

Charlie tried not to let her abruptness put his game off track. "Pleased to meet you, I'm Charlie Weasley – your future husband…" He let his cheesy grin grow wider.

He watched as she wrinkled her nose in annoyance. "This is nothing like an arranged marriage and you know it!"

"It's okay. You don't have to love me." Charlie bit his lip. The more annoyed she was, the more attracted he was to her. He was definitely interested in getting to know Lavender more, even at this early stage. "At least not straight away. I'll let you warm to me first…"

It looked like the witch started to soften. He'd always been told he had a sort of laid-back charm that instantly put people and creatures at ease. It was what made him a good dragon keeper. He just hoped he could continue to work his charm on this witch.

Charlie was surprised when she uncrossed her arms and offered a hand for him to shake. "I'm Lavender Brown, pleased to meet you, Charlie…" He caught a flash of a genuine smile under her frostiness and pulled his chair closer to the table, trying to ignore the erratic pounding of his heart.


End file.
